


Luminous

by Natasha_Barton



Category: Black Widow (Comics), Marvel, Marvel (Comics), Marvel 616, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: Alcohol, Birthday Party, Fluff, Nothing explicit, Other, Somewhat suggestive, but it's sweet?, fluffy one shot, gender neutral reader, maybe one of the fluffiest things I've ever written, very little angst, which is sad because it's not overly fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-21
Updated: 2020-03-21
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:54:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,619
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23238802
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Natasha_Barton/pseuds/Natasha_Barton
Summary: The Avengers throw a party, and you're determined to get Natasha to enjoy it
Relationships: Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov, Natasha Romanov (Marvel)/Reader
Comments: 2
Kudos: 36





	Luminous

“Ready to go?” You smile at Nat, her blue minidress sparkling in the bathroom lights. She sighs, sets down her lipstick, and flashes you a coy grin.

“What if we stayed here instead?”

“Hmm,” you arch an eyebrow as you take in her final look—the long legs, plunging neckline, and loose curls, “ _tempting_ , but you look far too good not to be seen.”

“But it’s just a stupid party,” she pouts, batting her eyes in that ridiculously over the top way you claim to hate, although it usually worked.

“Not this time, Nat. Clint _insisted_ that we at least make an appearance, and I have a feeling my life will be much easier if your best friend doesn’t hate me.”

“Fine,” she groans, “but if anyone even mentions bringing out the karaoke machine, we’re leaving.”

“What, not in the mood to watch Tony attempt some classic rock while absolutely plastered?” you laugh.

“Ugh, I saw enough at his 40th to last a lifetime.” Natasha shudders but fails to hide a slight smirk. It wasn’t the first time you’d seen her pretend she didn’t care for Tony, but this was her worst bluff yet. You wonder if she’d cracked open the vodka without you in preparation for this event; unfortunately, she holds her liquor well and rarely shows definitive signs of intoxication, so there was no way to tell how many drinks she’d had.

In order to protect his safehouse from inevitable damage, Clint had called everyone to the Avengers compound under the guise of team bonding, not that they necessarily needed it. He’d tasked you with luring Nat there, as she isn’t particularly keen on socializing, especially not with people outside her immediate circle of friends.

She grumbles all the way from the car into the compound. Most of it’s in Russian, but you don’t need to ask what’s upsetting her.

“Welcome! You’re only,” Clint glances at his watch, “32 minutes late! That might be a new record, Nat!”

“You’re lucky I’m here at all. But now that we’ve arrived, I can leave at any time and not feel a shred of guilt, so keep it up, I dare you.” Natasha winks at him and heads for the bar, where she ushers the bartender away and starts mixing her own drink.

“How much has she already had?” Clint drops his voice to a whisper as he hugs you.

“Your guess is as good as mine,” you shrug. “But hey, at least she’s here. Wouldn’t want her to miss the celebration.”

You make your way around the room, politely greeting the rest of the guests, before settling in on a barstool next to Nat and Maria.

“Now, this may just be a rumor, but I heard he has an issue with toast being cut diagonally,” Maria laughs.

“Think that applies to other types of bread? I’m tired of losing my lunch to all these boys.”

“It may only discourage Nick, but it’s worth a shot, right?”

“Busy conspiring against the boss?” you ask.

“Always!” Nat winks. “Maria, if you’ll excuse us a moment.” She leads you away from the others, down a dim hallway and into a training room. The lights flicker on in rows, revealing an arsenal of weapons. You’re finally close enough to smell the vodka seeping from her pores, to see the faint glaze in her eyes, and you start to panic, knowing she’s gone too far.

“Nat, love, let’s go back to the party, maybe get some water?”

“Shh, it’s _fine_. I’ve had way more than this and survived, it’s kind of an annual tradition. _Besides_ , if Clint didn’t want me to get drunk tonight, he wouldn’t have stocked the bar with my favorites.” She reaches out to intertwine your fingers, tugging you even closer. With her other hand she smooths the worry lines across your forehead. “I’m fine, _I promise_.”

She kisses you gently, slowly, and pulls away, leaving you desperate for more. With a teasing wink, she slips through the doors, leaving you in the middle of the nearly empty room. You regain your composure and follow, back to the bright lights and animated chatter of the party.

Thor is in the corner daring Tony to lift Mjolnir, egging him on to see if the suit will help. Curled up on a couch nearby are Pepper and Rhodey, deep in discussion, but each keeping a close eye on their best friend and the Asgardian. Bursts of laughter draw your attention to the bar, where Maria, Sam, Clint, and Bucky are loudly cracking jokes with an increasingly embarrassed Steve. Nick and Bruce appear to be discussing schematics for new tech at a table across the room, which would seem odd if it were anyone else, but in the time that you’d known them, you’d never really seen those two loosen up.

You scan the room again, certain you’d somehow missed her, but discover that Nat’s nowhere to be found.

“She’ll come back, when she’s ready.” Clint sidles up beside you and hands you a glass of champagne. “You know this is a big deal for her, even being here today. Give her space to sober up a bit and calm down.”

“She didn’t seem mad,” you shake your head, “just suspicious that I know.”

“As long as _they_ don’t,” Clint nods toward the other guests, “she’ll be fine.”

You make the rounds again, doing your best to bond with these wonderful people you hope will be in your life forever. Pepper and Rhodey commiserate with you over dealing with a loved one being a stubborn ass at times, although you have to acknowledge that they have it worse; Natasha could be completely unwilling to compromise, but she was much less likely to behave recklessly.

As you rise from the couch, Thor calls you over and tries to goad you into lifting Mjolnir, but, much like your girlfriend, you aren’t sure that’s something you want to know. Instead, you smile at Tony, his repulsors on full blast, the magical hammer refusing to budge whatsoever. 

“The physics of it don’t make any sense!” he yells, releasing his grip and finally quieting the hands of his suit.

“That’s because you’re relying on such primitive knowledge!” Thor laughs. “See, what you consider magic is quite simply science so advanced, your realm likely won’t understand it for another thousand years or so, at the rate you’re going. You may be smart on Earth, but the genius of Asgardians—”

Fearing an incredibly technical argument above your pay grade, you slink away to join the group at the bar.

“—and he looked at her, eyes wide, like a fucking deer in the headlights, _completely silent_ , until she gave up and asked someone else to dance!” Bucky claps a hand on Steve’s shoulder and throws his head back, practically cackling.

“Okay, Buck, I think that’s enough about pre-serum me.” Steve smiles weakly, his cheeks tinged red.

“Pre-serum?” Sam chuckles. “Man, he could’ve said that was last week and I would’ve believed him!”

“Making fun of Steve again?” Nat’s voice, low and rough, startles you, but months of her intentionally sneaking up on you has taught you not to jump. She wraps her arms around your waist, her head resting between your shoulder blades.

“Welcome back to the party, Nat.” Clint grins. “Got any stories you’d like to share?”

“Well,” without relinquishing contact, she slips around you to stand at your side, “there was this one time in New York…”

The details of her stories would seem exaggerated if you didn’t know the realities of their abilities and jobs. You spend the next hour or so laughing along with the others, blissfully unaware your time together is quickly drawing to a close.

“Hey, anyone want to break out the kar—” Tony yells, but Natasha is dragging you outside before he can finish his ill-fated question. Clint comes running after you, his tie flipping up over his shoulder as he jogs.

“Wait!”

To your surprise, Natasha actually stops and lets go of your arm, even starts walking back toward the building as if this all was anticipated. They embrace and whisper a few words to each other in a language you can’t hear well enough to identify. Clint smiles at you before heading back inside at a leisurely pace.

Nat’s quiet as you climb into the car, the toll of so much social interaction weighing on both of you, although you know the night’s not over yet. What comes next scares you more than it should, but you will your heart to slow, beg your voice to stay steady.

“Nat? Would you grab something out of the glovebox for me?”

“What could you possibly need—”

“Please?”

She sighs heavily and opens the compartment to discover a flat black box tied with a red satin ribbon. She shoots you a quizzical look as she loosens the bow. Inside sits a dainty silver chain with a single round charm, five small diamonds set at the points of an engraved design.

“It’s the constellation Delphinus,” you start to explain.

“Named after the dolphin Poseidon sent out to find Amphitrite,” she finishes the thought and traces the engraving with the tip of her finger. When she looks up at you, she’s smiling softly, her eyes brimming with tears. “How did you…?”

“Clint told me because he knew you wouldn’t.”

“Of course,” she laughs, wiping at her eyes. “How many other secrets has he shared?”

“Just the one, I promise.” You reach over and give her hand a reassuring squeeze. She gently kisses you, the bracelet slipping from her free hand as she moves to hold the back of your neck.

“Thank you,” she whispers.

“Happy birthday, Nat.”

**Author's Note:**

> This was a request I received a while ago, and it's my first ever reader fic! I did my best to keep it gender neutral so everyone, regardless of their gender identity, can put themselves into the story <3


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